Wing and Landboard: How hard can it be?
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- Опубліковано 9 січ 2021
- Thinking of using a wing with your mountainboard? Here's how it started for me:
I really wanted to snowboard, but I don't live near any any ski resorts, and the dry slope is closed. I've only recently started learning, and I really enjoy it. But what to do? Coronavirus - restrictions on travel, lockdown… No more snowboard practice for me for a while. I have been surfing a few times - I'm not that good but I do enjoy it, when the weather's good. A fair weather small wave sort of day. The trouble is it's just too far to go to get to a surf beach.
Having said that, I am fortunate to live close to the sea, well when the the tide's in. Technically it's more of an estuary and most of the time the tide is too low which means miles of sand and sticky mud quite keen to quickly swallow you whole if you're stupid enough to really want to walk out for a paddle… I could skateboard I suppose… on land of course, but I'm after adventure and recreation in the outside, far away from concrete and asphalt if possible.
Anyway, while whiling away a dark evening watching surf videos on UA-cam (when I really should have been doing something else) I found… wing boarding - using a hand held wing to pull you along on a board with a hydrofoil.
It quickly became clear how accessible this new phenomenon could be, and safe for me to learn on my own, unlike kitesurfing which I had tried but found so difficult to progress without access to a team of enthusiastic supporters to help me launch and land. Driving to water to learn to wing board would still be required, but I realised that it might not have to be so much of a problem - I could always use a landboard on the sand.
This is the start of that adventure, it has already proved to be great fun.
If you're inspired then why not give it a go too? If not then at least I hope you enjoy the ride!
Thank you for watching. - Спорт
Great for learning wing surfing afterwards! Good skills
Thanks for the video! I can only comment on two things: 1. More wind is essential as it will help you feel the wind and help making everything lighter. Once there is some lift, it will balance your body, like holding into a handle in the train.
2. In my opinion (sorry if i am not seeing it correctly) you are using the wing incorrectly. The nose of it should point in the direction you are travelling and most of the time you are pointing backwards which means that you should be heading downwind and using the wing as a traction kite. It works much better when the wing is pointing forward (nose of board, obviouly at 30-45 angle) and you follow the 90 degrees track (across the wind) more or less. Then aparent wind appears, you will get lift and forward momentum.
2 years into it and it is not easy! In a skate in the asphalt learning curve is faster
Thanks, you're absolutely right, more wind makes it easier, but it took a few sessions to get more confident having never used a wing before. Wing positioning also seems to come easier when a better wind is holding it up properly, but it's definitely something to work on though so thanks for the advice! I would love to try the wing with a skateboard but I still haven't been able to find a suitable smooth car free location. Anyone local with ideas please let me know!
Nice! I wish I had a place like that to learn on.
This so great for someone just starting out. I'm a bit envious of a big open packed sand flat to ride on. It might slow you down a bit but would be preferable for falls over pavement. ;-)
Fun to watch your skills improving!
Thanks for taking the time and effort to share this. I appreciate your efforts!
Thanks Neil, I'd always felt that part of the beach could be used more creatively so had to try it! Definitely less pain, though a little cleaning required afterwards!
Nice video, thanks for sharing 👍
You're welcome, I see you've been recording some good progress too, great suff! 👍🏽
The friction on sand robs momentum compared to the ease of land sailing on concrete or asphalt. I've land sailed with windsurfing rig & mountain boards or longboard skateboards since 1995. Wing sail can eliminate the somewhat dangerous need to switch front & back feet which is required with a windsurfing rig mast. I've sailed parking lots as small as 50 ft by 150 ft. Parking lots large enough for sailing are usually lighted at night & there are probably quite a few workable ones much closer to where you live than a useable beach. I do wear a serious helmet plus elbow pads & knee pads, just in case. Thank you for the video!
Thanks. On a good day it's plenty fast enough for me, but it's true, conditions are everything. Those land windsurf rigs look fun, though I do enjoy the simplicity of the wing
@@intheoutside123 Yes, wing sails are better for land sailing than windsurfing rigs in good winds, because of the safety issue. Also I see large diameter mountain board wheels are now influencing larger diameter longboard skateboard wheels for paddling & land sailing. One of my land boards has 6.5" diameter wheels. Also found the axle diameter of scooter wheels matches longboard axles so I switched 70 mm diameter & way too wide longboard wheels to 125 mm scooter wheels that are only 1" wide (less rolling resistance & they also avoid more tiny pebbles that could stop the board during slow turns).
which wing surfer size do you recommend? whats the largest that still handles ok?
Still better with a good foil kite just because you don't have to struggle so much with the wing. I find that 5 meter is hard to handle with a landbooard, and you can't do it on the grass because it is hard to get going in gusty winds.
Sweet video by the way
Thanks!
thanks for the video! It's great. I have all the stuff, but I don't have any real good open areas. I am going to be on the frozen lakes next winter. I am wondering if you really like the foot straps? I guess you need them to turn, but they seem like traps when you need a quick exit to keep from falling on your face. What has your experience taught you about that?
Glad you enjoyed it, frozen lakes sound amazing, I'd love to give that a go 😀 Overall I've found foot straps beneficial, I think it helps with control. Most times you can jump out when you need too. What I have found is that when things happen fast and you fly forward the wing kind of holds you up a bit - so I tend to land on my hips/thigh/knees. I've not face planted... yet... I wear knee pads under my trousers, and sometimes padded shorts under them too, it definitely helps with confidence. Actually my top tip would be don't carry a Gopro mount or anything hard in your pocket - like I did on 'Bad Weather or Good Fun' - that fall left a big bruise on my thigh!
This location looks good and is similar to Wildwood, NJ.
Interesting, I, had a quick Google and there's certainly plenty of vehicle tracks on the beach at Wildwood which is good sign! It's all about making use of what you have locally.
i learnt to kitesurf by kite landboarding with a fixed bridle ram air kite (flexifoil blade), there much more efficient that the wings, i've tried snowboarding on a field in the uk with a duotone wing but i think the snow is too wet, the kite worked well thou.. good vid by the way..
Thanks! I do enjoy the pump and go simplicity of the wing, especially if out on my own. The combination of both decent snow and wind in the uk would be a dream come true... 😄
S25 fronthandel 3 normal or 2 for hight winds and backhand in position 1 or 2 ervery time ;-)
What board do you use do you have any tips for boards for beginners. Decent ones but not break the bank ones
Hi, I've only ever ridden a Scrub Psyco which I've had a while and wasn't really using until I tried with a wing. It's been great to use with the wing and has so far survived the sand well. Scrub don't exist anymore but the Hq Raid Assassin is identical as far as I can see and a reasonable price for a beginner mountainboard
What kind of equipment are you using. What kind of board and wing and what was the cost for the setup?
Hi, the board is a Scrub Psycho 2 which was previously underused before i tried winging. Scrub boards are not made anymore but the HQ Raid Assassin is the same, under £200. I'm using a Naish 4.6m wing, not cheap but good quality and you can pick up reduced price older models brand new at about £500. Any wing around 5m should work so long as winds are OK and sand is firm 👍🏽
Nice video. How do you mainten your board against sand and salt?
Thank you. I brush off sand and rinse with water after use, then spray around the bearings with PTFE spray. I would add don't spend too much on the board in the first place (unless you can!), it is a harsh environment for wood and wheels. I bought an older model at reduced price so less to worry about if it breaks. Some paint on my deck is starting to wear from sandy shoes rubbing on it, but it's held up well overall.
Super thanx for the reply. I'm thinking about buying a board for the beach, I'll try a cheap one and will apply your advise of mantainance 😉🤜🤛
Cool! What's more fun, w/ a kite or a wing?
Kites have a lot of more power for the size, but wings can go anywhere, near trees, under bridges, down paths. And unlike kites, wings can be 100% depowered by just letting them fly behind, which makes downhill runes a lot of fun.
@@SEAPanel Okay, thanks a lot. Maybe, I will buy a wing. But, I live in The Netherlands and we don't have mountains. ;-) Will be fine!
Need a advice.. For a boy, 12 years old, 44kg, want try a wing on grass with a mountainboard, 10/15knt the 4mt is right or better a small?
Hi, that's a difficult one as grass creates more resistance so you wouldn't want to go too small. Too big and and he may find it harder to hold. Is there a shop you can visit so you can try for size first? Let us know how it goes!
@@intheoutside123 thanks for reply... The problem is he want use a kite, (he have a trainer 1.5mt but have no power) but he have difficult with my flysurfer peak 4mt, then he ask me for a wing. But I've no idea, i never try it
is there a group of land board wingers at Braine?
Hi Martyn, there's only the land yacht club so far as I am aware. Brean wardens don't seem keen about wheels on the sand otherwise 😕
Hey dude what size wing is that, cheers
Naish wingsurfer 4.6m 👍🏽
What board are you using?
It's a Scrub Psycho 2. I don't think Scrub exist anymore sadly but (I may be wrong) I think it's been resurrected as the HQ Raid Assassin. It's served me well so far though probably time to change the bearings. It starts to wobble ( a bit) at about 20 mph, which is usually when I start to run out of good sand/get scared anyway. I could upgrade to channel trucks in the future 🤔. Definitely been worth it for the price 🤙
@@intheoutside123 thanks for ur reply
One sure way to damage an expensive toy, there surely must be a type of kite without the pump up bladders which I see getting dragged along the ground.
Don't worry BigAL, it's holding up well. The wing tips are reinforced and have proved tough enough. After a year of use there's some fraying at the very end of the tip where I've rubbed the wheels, but the bladder is intact. It's certainly well made.
what size is your wing.?
Naish Wingsurfer S25, 4.6m
Wait for strong winds man
Sound advice, thanks! I'm also hoping a bigger wing will help keep the fun going on lower wind days. It's on the shopping list...
@@intheoutside123 what size is that wing?
@@stimpsonjkat5925 It's 4.6m, it's works well for me from 15 knots (17 mph, I think) probably to about 22 knots. Around 5m seems a good size, it's much nicer starting in lighter winds, but of course depends on rider weight and local conditions 👍🏽
@@andysnowball123 yeah I decided on 5.5m after many hours of research :) Wind around here can vary between 8-22knots.. prob average 12 in the summer and 17 in the cooler months. I'm 6'2" 80kg +- a few kilo depending on how much pizza I consumed so hopefully should work out!
Redesign it as a kite. Has potential